Field Recording as Sonic Journalism

What is sonic-journalism? In radio news, current affairs and sound documentary, as on TV despite the significance of images, the dominance of speech – spoken reportage, interviews, commentary, discussion – is unquestioned. Sonic–journalism is based on the idea that all sound, including non–speech, gives information about places and events and that listening provides valuable insights different from, but complimentary to, visual images and language. This does not exclude speech but re–addresses the balance towards the relevance of other sounds. In practice field recordings become the means to achieve this. Recordings can, of course, be used in many ways. In my view sonic–journalism occurs when field recordings are allowed adequate space and time to be heard in their own right.